'MICK'S COURT': Mick Grensted tribute makes its way to the court

YREKA - The late Mick Grensted is being honored with the court at Miner Gym being renamed "Mick's Court."

Former players of the longtime Yreka Miner boys varsity basketball coach said that it's a fitting tribute to a man who did so much for his players and the Yreka basketball program.

A dedication ceremony will be held at the Miner boys varsity basketball game versus Illinois Valley on Saturday. Because of weather concerns the games were tentatively moved from Saturday evening to 1 p.m. for the junior varsity game and 2:30 p.m. for the varsity contest. The ceremony will be held either before the start of the varsity game or at halftime. School officials said that there is a possibility the game could be called off, weather dependant. The Miner boys and girls basketball game versus Mount Shasta on the road on Friday was called off due to the weather,

A plaque honoring Grensted that was donated by Miner Power will be given to his family at the ceremony and will be shown in the display case in the gym.

His widow, Judy Grensted, said that this honor means a lot to his family.

"I'm very pleased," Judy Grensted said. "We're all over the moon over it."

Three former players, Mike Cadola, Barry Peters and Ron "Curley" Culp, who is now the girls junior varsity head coach at Yreka High, played key roles in making sure the court would be named after Mick. These former players said they wanted to do their part to honor Grensted. Cadola said that while Grensted could be tough on his players at times, he was a great coach and someone he had a lot of respect for.

"He got out of you what he knew you had in you," Cadola said. "He was tough but he was trying to get out the best in you."

Cadola said that they received approval from the school board to remain the court and is pleased that his old coach is being honored.

Mick began coaching basketball at Yreka High in 1960 and continued coaching the varsity boys until 1977. His teams were dominant for pretty much his entire time he coached and the gym would be constantly filled with fans cheering the teams on, his wife recalled. In 1967,1973 and 1974, the Miners won the Northern Athletic League Championship. The 1966-1967 team went 22-5 and the 1973-1974 team finished 22-4 .A teacher at the school, he also coached softball as well as freshman football and track and field. Grensted retired as a teacher in 1994. For a number of years he owned Mick's Clubhouse, a sports memorable store in Yreka across the street from the Daily News and it became a popular place for people to stop and talk to Grensted, his obituary said.

Page 2 of 2 - "Many friends and former students enjoyed stopping by the shop and catching up on things _ past and present," his obituary read. "He rarely forgot a face and truly enjoyed keeping up with his former students." He passed away on Jan.11, 2001 after a long battle with colon cancer.

Peters, a member of the school board, said that he and Mick were still close when he passed away and he was someone he admired. Peters recalled constantly going to Mick's store in town to visit and chat and said he was always there when he needed him.

"He was always interested in what you were doing," he said.

When he was in high school, Peters said that Grensted taught him and his fellow players a lot of valuable life lessons and called him a "mentor."

In a 2008 Daily News article about Grensted being honored as part of an "Honor a Legends" night before a varsity boys basketball game, Mick had this to say about his time coaching basketball at Yreka High.

"We did get some things done and I am very proud of the fact that my guys battled hard every night," Grensted said in the story. "It was about my guys more than anything."